Subjugate Your Ego

Sarva Roopa Dharam Shaantam,
Sarva Naama Dharam Shivam,
Sachchidanandam Advaitam,
Satyam Shivam Sundaram.
Ellarukkum Enndey Asirvadangal! (My blessings to all)

Embodiments of Love!

In this world, you do not find peace and happiness anywhere. Though man is himself the embodiment of peace and love, yet he is not able to experience them. Even though he has these sacred qualities in him, man is not able to understand this truth and is carried away by delusions. As a result, he is subjected to endless troubles. In order to experience Divinity and to find peace and happiness, you do not need to search elsewhere. In order to have a vision of your True Self, you need to understand your true identity.

What is that which conceals the Truth from man? It is only the mind. The clouds which originate from the rays of the sun cover the sun itself. When a strong wind blows, the clouds get scattered and then you can see the sun. Just as the clouds cover the sun, likewise the mind covers the Atma from which it has originated.

No other creature has the Divine power that is present in man. But he is not able to comprehend the Divine power latent in him. What is the way to know this? Once you develop friendship with God, you will realise all your powers. The Geeta describes God as Suhrut, which means one who is totally selfless; one who does not expect anything in return; one who does not harm anybody and one who is the embodiment of Love. Man usually expects rewards for the help he renders. But God is the only One who considers the welfare of humanity as His happiness and does not have any expectations whatsoever.

Desires Are Limitless

Bad qualities like hatred, anger, and desire are responsible for restlessness. The worst enemy of mankind is desire. In this way, desire always remains an enemy to mankind. So, one should keep desire under control. The desires are capable of ruining not only mankind but also gods like Indra and Chandra. One can never satisfy one’s desires. Vedanta has compared desire to fire and the ocean. Fire will never be satisfied, whatever the quantity of firewood you may put into it. The Geeta has given the epithet, Analam, to fire, which means that it can never be satisfied and keeps asking for more and more. Similarly in the case of the ocean. It keeps on accepting any number of rivers that merge in it, and yet remains the same. Ocean and fire have no trace of satisfaction. Therefore, limitless desires are compared to these two.

The whole world is like a book; read it well. Nature is the best teacher. There are lots of things in this world to be known. You cannot find God by going through a book or by undertaking spiritual sadhana. By constantly reading books, one becomes a book oneself! All that is contained in pustaka (book) is stored in the mastaka (head). Reading books will only increase your doubts. The more intelligent you are, the more doubts you get. Developing compassion is the real sadhana. Only when you lead a life full of compassion will you be able to see God, the embodiment of compassion.

Only Through ‘Eye of Love’, We Can Visualise World Peace

Since ancient times, Bharat has stood for the peace and security of the entire world, spreading the message of spirituality. You should work for the peace and prosperity of the country. Whatever work you undertake, do it for the welfare of the society. Universal peace depends on the peace of the society, which in turn depends on the peace of the individual. So, the individual, the society, and the universe are interrelated and interdependent. But today man is bothered about himself and not about society.

Today, people who talk of peace, but actually cause restlessness in the society are on the increase. Though they are endowed with intelligence, they act in a perverted manner. In what way can we help such people? The only way is to open their Prema-netram (Eye of Love). Only through the ‘Eye of Love’, we can visualise world peace. Without working for the welfare of the society, how can you attain world peace? It is impossible.

All wealth and prosperity cannot confer true happiness. People say, America is a land of prosperity. What is the use of all this affluence? They do not have peace of mind. Bharatiyas are the embodiments of peace. They may not have such comforts but have love for God.

Of all the time one spends on children,
friends and worldly pleasures,
Acquiring wealth, power, name, and fame,
if only a fraction of it is spent
For contemplating on the Lotus Feet of the Lord,
One can even escape the mighty doors of hell,
the abode of Yama.
(Sanskrit poem)

Only devotion can make you free from misery. In ancient times, kings ruled over their kingdoms in a righteous manner. The very name of Emperor Bali instills fear in the minds of the people. But Bali was the very embodiment of compassion. He was an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu and he upheld the principles of righteousness. God loved him since he had these three sacred qualities. It is enough if you have Vishnu Bhakti (Devotion to Lord Vishnu). Only devotion can make you free from misery. Prahlada always chanted the name of Hari.

Narayana Bhaja Narayana,
Narayana Bhaja Narayana, Narayana,
Tana Mana Ranjana, Bhava Bhaya Bhanjana,
Asura Nikhandana, Narayana.

In spite of all attempts to push him down from mountains, drown him in the oceans, trample him under the feet of wild elephants, to get him bitten by poisonous snakes, he repeated Narayana’s name. Only the name of Narayana helped him to overcome all these troubles. Only devotion will make you forget all your problems and experience bliss. Sakkubai, the great devotee of Lord Panduranga, continuously chanted the name of Panduranga in order to overcome the troubles caused by her husband and mother-in-law. Gora Kumbhar forgot all his worries singing the name of the Lord. Such is the power of the Divine name.

God Is The Only Saviour

What man needs today is bliss. Dukkha-nivritti and Ananda-prapti (alleviation of misery and attainment of bliss) should be the sole aim of man. For this, man has to make friendship with God. In this world, you may have many friends. But all of them can only say, ‘Hello, How are you? Goodbye’, nothing more! God is not like that. He is always with you, in you, around you, above you, and below you. Since man is distancing himself from God who is the true and eternal friend, he is subjected to sorrow. Today, man is after money and power and does not think of God. How long do money and power last? They come and go. That’s what Shankaracharya said, “Ma Kuru Dhana jana Yauvana Garvam, Harati Nimishat, Kaalah Sarvam”, which means money, power, and youth are momentary and will not last long.

Bhaja Govindam, Bhaja Govindam,
Govindam Bhaja Moodhamate,
Sampraapte Sannihite Kaale,
Nahi, Nahi Rakshati Dukurn Karane.

“Your studies will not come to your rescue in the end; so chant the name of Govinda”, said Adi Shankaracharya. God is the only refuge and only He can come to your rescue in the end. So, develop faith in God. He is the only saviour.

All the world that you see with your naked eyes is only apparent truth. All that you see is Pravritti (external), but there is a basis for this. That is called Nivritti (internal). The unseen roots are the basis for the tree, which is seen. For buildings, the foundation is the basis. Today, you are bothered about only the building (body), and not the foundation. The body is the temple of God. But, what is the nature of this body?

It is full of dirt and diseases.
It cannot cross the ocean of Samsara.
So, O man! never think that this body is permanent.
Surrender yourself at the Lotus Feet of the Lord.
(Telugu poem)

How long will this body remain? “Body is like a water bubble; mind is like a mad monkey; so do not follow the body; do not follow the mind; follow the conscience.” This is the principle of Atma. But man follows the body and the mind, leaving the conscience. No doubt, for the earthly sojourn, the body and the mind are necessary, but you should not give undue importance to them.

Give Up Moha To Get Moksha

Emperor Bali did undertake all the sacred activities, but he had in him two bad qualities–Ahamkaram and Abhimanam (ego and pride). Even Arjuna had these feelings during the Mahabharatam war. He began his address to Krishna uttering the syllable, Sva, which means Swartha, Svajana (I and My people). This is called Moha (attachment). As long as man does not give up this Moha, he will not get Moksha (liberation). All your education and jobs will not follow you at the end. All these are passing clouds. That is why the Geeta said, “Anityam Asukham Lokam, Idam Prapya, Bhajasva maam” (As the world is temporary and full of misery, think of God continuously). Keeping God, who is eternal, in your heart, you should lead your life in this temporary world.

Once Bali performed a Yajna, by name Sarvajit. Lord Vamana also attended the Yajna. Emperor Bali welcomed Him and paid his respects. Till then, Vamana did not ask for anything. In fact, He was planning how to subdue the ego of Emperor Bali. In this world, for any work, people plan in advance. But God’s plan is not an ordinary one. God always thinks of the future and plans accordingly. Vamana went to Emperor Bali and asked for three footsteps of land. But his preceptor, Shukracharya warned him against giving what Vamana asked for, since he knew who Vamana was, and the purpose, for which He had come. Then Bali said, “Guruji, the hand of the giver is always on the top and that of the receiver is at the bottom. When God Himself comes to me and asks for something, His hand will be below that of mine. That is enough for me.” Even there, we find a trace of ego.

Ego Is A Bad Quality For A Devotee

What is the inner meaning of the inhalation and exhalation processes, ‘So’ham?’ ‘So’ means ‘That’ (God); ‘Ham’ means ‘I’. The sum and substance of this is, we have to take God into us (‘So’–inhalation) and leave out Ahamkaram (‘Ham’–exhalation). This is called Hamsa Gayatri. This inhalation and exhalation process goes on continuously for 21,600 times a day in us. This means, you welcome God into you and drive out ego from you as many times. So long as there is ego in you, you will never be happy. No doubt, Emperor Bali was a great devotee, but he was also egoistic. Ego is a bad quality for a devotee. Only through love, peace, humility, and courage can you overcome ego.

God came down in order to destroy the ego of Bali and distribute Love to the entire world. Bali was granted a boon that he should be allowed to come and visit his people on this day, every year. That day is celebrated as Onam. Be it an emperor or an ordinary person, one can attain God only through Love.

Follow Your Conscience

Many lights are glowing in this hall. Some people are listening; some are dozing. The light is unaffected by all this. It is a witness. Similarly, in the broad daylight, some do good, and some do bad. The sun remains unaffected by your deeds. Your bad actions can never harm God. Your good actions will never make Him happy either. Be it good or bad, you will have to reap the fruits of your actions. God is Jyotirmayudu (Embodiment of Light). So He has nothing to do with your good or bad. He is just a witness. He is present in everybody as conscience. That is why I keep telling:

Follow the Master,
Face the devil,
Fight to the end,
Finish the game.

Who is your Master? Here, conscience is your Master. So, follow your conscience till the end of your life. Never give up in the middle. Once you have love in your heart, you can accomplish anything. You should not have hatred towards anybody. We should love even those who hate us. As a result, there will be a transformation in their Hridaya. Hri+Daya=Hridaya, which means the heart should be full of compassion.

Humanity is also called ‘Mankind’. So man should have compassion in his heart. But, today there is no compassion, only fashion exists. So long as fashion is there, compassion cannot find a place, because Hridaya is a single chair, not a double sofa nor a musical chair.

‘Life is a game, play it’. The difficulties, the pleasures, and pains, the profits and losses come and go like passing clouds. The very name of the world is ‘Ja-gat’, which means that which comes and goes. In this world only God is permanent, everything else is transitory. But, we go by this changing world, forgetting God. As a result of this, we suffer.

God is Closer To You Than Even Your Own Mother

God is not separate from you. He is in you. But you are distancing Him from yourself. Out of the fire comes the ash, but it covers the fire itself. Once you blow the ash away, you can see the fire. Similarly, there is the fire of Divinity in you, but it is covered by the ash of worldly desires. In order to see God, you do not need to undertake any spiritual practices. All that you have to do is to get rid of ignorance. God is closer to you than even your own mother. You are distancing yourself from such Divinity. That is ignorance. In order to get rid of this ignorance, you should develop Love.

You are God; This is the teaching of all religions. Christ initially said, “I am the Messenger of God”. There is always a distance between the Messenger and his Master. After some time, Christ said, “I am the Son of God”. Here the relationship with God has increased. After a few more years, Christ said, “I and My Father are One”. Then comes the Holy Ghost. This is what Bharatiyas described as Dvaita (Dualism), Vishishtadvaita (Qualified Non–dualism), Advaita (Non–dualism), and the state of Turiya. Even in Zoroastrianism, it is said, “I am in the Light, the Light is in me, and finally, I am the Light”. You should know the Truth that you are God. You are a human being in form, but truly, you are God. You are not the body, the mind, the senses, and the intellect, you are You only. When I say, this is My handkerchief, that means, the handkerchief is separate from Me. Similarly, when you say, this is my body, the body is separate from you. Then who are you? The body, mind, and senses are your instruments. You are the Master. So, master the mind and be a Mastermind. Understand this truth and conduct yourself accordingly. Then you will not suffer at all. In times of difficulties, you should think of God more and more, like Prahlada. You should love God more and more. Love has no limits. No one can describe Love. So Love is God, live in Love. You are the embodiment of Love. Yet you suffer because of your attachment to the body.

Mind Is Like A Horse And The Body Is Like A Chariot

What is this body? This body is temporary and is bound to perish at any time. Death can come at any point of time, be it in childhood or in youth or in old age. Why do you attach so much importance to such a body? So long you are alive, you have to maintain your body in good shape. The body is like a chariot meant for travelling. The mind is like a horse. Man today keeps the horse behind the chariot. As a result of this, he is travelling in the reverse direction. The horse should always be in front of the chariot, which means we have to give primary importance to the mind and next to the body. But, today people all the time feed only their body and not the mind, with the result that the horse is becoming weaker and the chariot heavier. How can a weak horse pull a heavy chariot? Just as you feed your body thrice a day, your mind also should be fed likewise. Prayer, meditation, and chanting of the names of God is the breakfast for your mind. Gayatri mantra says, Om Bhur Bhuvaha Swaha... Bhur means ‘Materialisation’ (body), Bhuvaha means ‘vibration’ (Life force), Swaha means Prajnanam (Radiation). These three are present in us. The same teaching is given to small children at the time of Upanayanam (Thread Ceremony). Such sacred teachings are being forgotten today.

In ancient times, all these were put into practice; now practice is replaced by fashion. Only through practice, one can get happiness. What we need is practical science and not platform speeches. All the platform speeches are out of bookish knowledge, which is of no use to us. We need to have practical knowledge. Devotion bereft of practice is useless.

Embodiments of Love!

In a family of three persons, if there is no unity among them there will be unrest. Similarly, if there is no unity in our thoughts, words, and deeds, we will be totally restless. So, we should harmonise these three. Let it be a name and constantly chant that name. Always have the feeling that I am God, I am God. Then you become God. As you think, so you become. This is what is called ‘Brahmavid Brahmaiva Bhavati’ (the knower of God becomes God himself).

Practice Sacrifice And Forgiveness

All have devotion, all are sincere, but there is no sacrifice. ‘Bali’ means sacrifice. Emperor Bali could attain Divinity through his devotion and sacrifice. Bharat is the birthplace of people of great sacrifice like Emperor Bali and Emperor Shibi. A pigeon sought the refuge of Emperor Shibi on being chased by an eagle. Shibi granted refuge to the pigeon. The eagle argued that the pigeon was its prey. Then Shibi said, “O eagle! I will give you the flesh of my body equal to the weight of this pigeon”, and he started chopping his own flesh. He made such a great sacrifice for the sake of a small pigeon. Such emperors were many in number in Bharat. We should follow the ideals of such noble souls. Since ancient times, Bharat has been the center of all spiritual wealth spreading the gospel of peace, happiness, and security to the rest of the world.

The mind is nothing but a bundle of desires. If you separate the threads, cloth disappears. Similarly, if you remove desires one by one, the mind ceases to exist. In ancient times, this was referred to as tyaga (sacrifice). Today, many people talk of tyaga, but in fact are immersed in bhoga (pleasures), which results in Roga (disease). In order to get rid of this Roga, one has to cultivate tyaga and love for God.

Start the day with Love;
Fill the day with Love;
Spend the day with Love;
End the day with Love;
This is the way to God.
You Should Have Full Faith In Your Religion

Embodiments of Love!

Emperor Bali served the people of Kerala and sacrificed everything, including his body. That is why he has attained such an exalted position, not possible for others. The devotion of the people of Kerala is unparalleled. At one time, Kerala was considered to be a Communist State, but people have been going to the Padmanabha Swamy Temple then and now in large numbers. They get up early in the morning, have their bath, apply sandal paste on their foreheads, and offer their prayers. There is no change in their devotion. Parties may come and go, but the ‘Hridaya Party’ (Party of the Spiritual Heart) is permanent.

A Muslim should become a true Muslim; a Christian should become a true Christian and a Hindu should become a true Hindu. You should have full faith in your religion and lead an ideal life. That is true Bhakti (devotion), true Mukti (liberation).

To attain Mukti, practice the following principles: Forget all the harm done to you by others and the help you have done to others. Then you will have peace in your heart. If someone has done harm to you, do not be revengeful. If someone has hurt your feelings, the best way to alleviate your suffering is to forget and forgive. Forgiveness is very important. It is Truth, it is Dharma, it is Veda; it is non–violence; it is happiness and it is heaven itself. This forgiveness is everything in all the worlds. So, cultivate this sacred quality of forgiveness. This is possible only by developing Love for God.

Discourse in Sai Kulwant Hall on 4-9-1998.